Singing Games Lesson Plan - Year 4 Lesson 1

In the initial lesson of a series for Year 4, the primary objective is to engage students in the art of clapping games, enhancing their ability to maintain a steady pulse, and to sing with both melodic and rhythmic precision. The lesson aims to teach students how to follow cue words and actions accurately and to encourage them to create their own hand clapping sequences. Additionally, the lesson focuses on performance and self-appraisal, allowing students to showcase their skills and evaluate their own and others' work. The key vocabulary for this lesson includes 'pulse', 'rhythm', and 'sequence', terms that are essential for understanding the structure and timing of music and movement.

The lesson is structured around a series of main activities, starting with pairs of students making up their own clapping routines to the beat of country dance music or a drum's steady pulse. Students are then introduced to traditional clapping games such as 'Hi Lo Chickalo' and 'A Sailor Went to Sea, Sea, Sea', which they first practice without a partner to ensure accuracy before pairing up. The lesson also includes the singing game 'I Found a Box of Matches', challenging students to maintain a consistent tempo. The plenary session encourages students to share clapping games they already know and to consider teaching the games they've learned during the lesson to their peers during playtime. These activities are designed to meet the National Curriculum's goals of exploring duration and performing in an ensemble context, using voices with increasing accuracy and control.